Servicemembers Transitioning to Civilian Life: DOD Can Better Leverage Performance Information to Improve Participation in Counseling Pathways
Fast Facts
The Transition Assistance Program helps servicemembers choose a career, pursue higher education or entrepreneurship, or find a job after military service. The program tailors support to individuals' needs based on how prepared they are to enter civilian life.
But nearly 25% of servicemembers who needed maximum support didn't attend a mandatory 2-day class. And most servicemembers didn't start the program at least 1 year before leaving service, as normally required.
DOD collects data on class attendance and the timing of participation, but doesn't fully use it to inform program decisions or improve attendance. We recommended it do so.
Highlights
What GAO Found
To improve the Transition Assistance Program (TAP), the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019 (FY 2019 NDAA) includes provisions requiring the service branches to establish counseling pathways, among other actions. GAO found that DOD service branches had fully implemented the TAP counseling pathways. These pathways include a self-assessment, individualized initial counseling, tier assignment that reflects servicemembers' transition preparedness, and a revised core curriculum. Service branch officials, TAP staff, and servicemembers GAO interviewed from selected installations generally expressed positive feedback on the TAP counseling pathways.
Over 90 percent of transitioning servicemembers participated in the TAP counseling pathways, according to GAO's analysis of TAP data from April 1, 2021 to March 31, 2022. In addition, participation in 2-day classes on employment, higher education, vocational training, and entrepreneurship increased. Nonetheless, the service branches waived many servicemembers from attending them. Per service branch policies, servicemembers who need maximum transition support must attend a 2-day class, but GAO found that nearly a quarter of them did not. GAO also found that most servicemembers (70 percent) did not start TAP more than 1 year in advance, as generally required.
The service branches and the TAP policy office collect and review performance information on 2-day class attendance and timeliness. However, they do not fully leverage this information to understand and improve results, inconsistent with leading practices for using performance information. For example, DOD does not use data it collects on servicemembers who start TAP less than 1 year in advance, including why they started late and whether they involuntarily left service for disciplinary reasons. Better understanding root causes would help DOD officials to craft and implement effective corrective action plans and improve servicemembers' ability to benefit from the full range of transition resources available to them.
Time Frames for Starting theTransition Assistance Program (TAP) for DOD Active-Duty Servicemembers Who Left the Military from April 1, 2021 through March 31, 2022
Note: The 1-year time frame does not apply when servicemembers face an unanticipated separation or retirement or, for reserve component servicemembers, when demobilization makes the time frame unfeasible. Therefore, in some cases the requirement may have been met although the servicemember started TAP less than 1 year before separation or retirement.
Why GAO Did This Study
More than half a million servicemembers are expected to participate in TAP over the next few years. TAP is a mandatory program designed to assist separating servicemembers who may face challenges in choosing a career path, finding employment, or deciding which college to attend. The program was recently tailored to meet individual servicemember needs by assigning them to counseling pathways based on how prepared they are to transition back to civilian life.
The NDAA for Fiscal Year 2019 included a provision for GAO to review the TAP counseling pathways. This report addresses, among other things, the implementation of TAP counseling pathways and transitioning servicemembers' participation in these pathways.
GAO reviewed relevant federal laws, policies, and agency documents and interviewed officials from relevant federal agencies, service branches, and five installations. The installations were selected for diversity in numbers served, location, and service branch. In addition, GAO analyzed the most recent available TAP data, and determined they were sufficiently reliable for active-duty members of the DOD service branches but not DOD reserve component or Coast Guard servicemembers.
Recommendations
GAO is making eight recommendations—that the service branches and DOD TAP policy office more fully leverage the performance information they collect to develop and implement plans to improve: (1) 2-day class attendance and (2) TAP timeliness. DOD agreed with the recommendations.
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Department of the Air Force | The Secretary of the Air Force, in coordination with the Secretary of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Manpower and Reserve Affairs, should better leverage TAP performance information on 2-day class attendance to develop and implement a corrective action plan for improving attendance, as appropriate, particularly for servicemembers deemed to require maximum transition support. (Recommendation 1) |
The Department of Defense (DOD) concurred with this recommendation. The Air Force used performance information on 2-day class attendance to develop its corrective actions. These actions included training TAP counselors, analyzing reasons for noncompliance with class attendance requirements, and updating guidance. In January 2025, DOD issued a report to Congress describing these corrective actions. The congressional report noted this resulted in 83 percent of tier 3 servicemembers who attended a 2-day class in calendar year 2023, which was a 7 percent improvement from the 76 percent average stated in our report. We encourage the Air Force to continue to demonstrate improvement.
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| Department of the Army | The Secretary of the Army, in coordination with the Secretary of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Manpower and Reserve Affairs, should better leverage TAP performance information on 2-day class attendance to develop and implement a corrective action plan for improving attendance, as appropriate, particularly for servicemembers deemed to require maximum transition support. (Recommendation 2) |
The Department of Defense (DOD) concurred with this recommendation. The Army used performance information on 2-day class attendance to develop its corrective actions. These actions included quarterly reporting of 2-day class attendance and updating TAP data tracking and reporting systems. In January 2025, DOD issued a report to Congress describing these corrective actions. The congressional report noted this resulted in 83 percent of tier 3 servicemembers who attended a 2-day class, which was a 7 percent improvement from the 76 percent average stated in our report. We encourage the Army to continue to demonstrate improvement.
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| Department of the Navy | The Secretary of the Navy should ensure that the Commandant of the Marine Corps, in coordination with the Secretary of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Manpower and Reserve Affairs, should better leverage TAP performance information on Marine Corps servicemembers' 2-day class attendance to develop and implement a corrective action plan for improving attendance, as appropriate, particularly for servicemembers deemed to require maximum transition support. (Recommendation 3) |
The Department of Defense (DOD) concurred with this recommendation. In January 2024, the Marine Corps reported that it is in the process of updating its policy guidance to improve 2-day track attendance and will continue monitoring compliance via inspections. The estimated completion date for these actions is June 2025. We will consider closing this recommendation once the Marine Corps provides documentation of the corrective actions taken along with documentation that it used TAP performance information on 2-day class attendance to develop its corrective action plan--especially for servicemembers deemed to require maximum transition support (tier 3).
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| Department of the Navy | The Secretary of the Navy, in coordination with the Secretary of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Manpower and Reserve Affairs, should better leverage TAP performance information on 2-day class attendance to develop and implement a corrective action plan for improving attendance, as appropriate, particularly for servicemembers deemed to require maximum transition support. (Recommendation 4) |
The Department of Defense (DOD) concurred with this recommendation. The Navy used performance information on 2-day class attendance to develop its corrective actions. These actions included creating class attendance reports and resuming area site visits and counselor training. In January 2025, DOD issued a report to Congress describing these corrective actions. The congressional report noted that 83 percent of tier 3 servicemembers attended a 2-day class, which was a 7 percent improvement from the 76 percent average stated in our report. We encourage the Navy to continue to demonstrate improvement.
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| Department of the Air Force | The Secretary of the Air Force, in coordination with the Secretary of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Manpower and Reserve Affairs, should better leverage TAP performance information on when servicemembers begin initial and pre-separation counseling to develop and implement a corrective action plan to improve timeliness. (Recommendation 5) |
The Department of Defense (DOD) concurred with this recommendation. The Air Force used performance information on timeliness of starting TAP to develop its corrective actions. These actions included increased communication to promote awareness of TAP requirements among senior leaders, supervisors, service members, and their spouses. It also updated inspection checklists and analyzed why servicemembers did not meet the timeliness requirement. The Air Force also coordinated with the Defense Manpower Data Center to assess the feasibility of creating automated notifications based on dates of service. In addition, it coordinated with DOD to assess the feasibility of creating a commander's dashboard so installation commanders can track their unit's TAP performance. In January 2025, DOD issued a report to Congress describing these corrective actions. The congressional report noted this resulted in 52 percent of servicemembers who met the timeliness requirement, double the 25 percent rate stated in our report. We encourage the Air Force to continue to demonstrate improvement.
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| Department of the Army | The Secretary of the Army, in coordination with the Secretary of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Manpower and Reserve Affairs, should better leverage TAP performance information on when servicemembers begin initial and pre-separation counseling to develop and implement a corrective action plan to improve timeliness. (Recommendation 6) |
The Department of Defense (DOD) concurred with this recommendation. The Army used performance information on timeliness of starting TAP to develop its corrective actions. These actions included establishing quarterly reporting of timeliness rates for starting TAP and updating TAP data tracking and reporting systems. In January 2025, DOD issued a report to Congress describing these corrective actions. The congressional report noted that this resulted in 52 percent of servicemembers who met the timeliness requirement, double the 25 percent rate stated in our report. We encourage the Army to continue to demonstrate improvement.
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| Department of the Navy | The Secretary of the Navy should ensure that the Commandant of the Marine Corps, in coordination with the Secretary of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Manpower and Reserve Affairs, should better leverage TAP performance information on when Marine Corps servicemembers begin initial and pre-separation counseling to develop and implement a corrective action plan to improve timeliness. (Recommendation 7) |
The Department of Defense (DOD) concurred with this recommendation. In January 2024, the Marine Corps reported that it is in the process of updating its policy guidance to improve timeliness and will continue monitoring compliance via inspections. The Marine Corps also reported that it will maximize its communications to increase awareness of timeliness requirements. The estimated completion date for these actions is June 2025. We will consider closing this recommendation once the Marine Corps provides documentation of the corrective actions taken along with documentation that it used TAP performance information on timeliness to develop its corrective action plan.
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| Department of the Navy | The Secretary of the Navy, in coordination with the Secretary of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Manpower and Reserve Affairs, should better leverage TAP performance information on when servicemembers begin initial and pre-separation counseling to develop and implement a corrective action plan to improve timeliness. (Recommendation 8) |
The Department of Defense (DOD) concurred with this recommendation. The Navy used performance information to identify why sailors did not meet the timeliness requirement and developed its corrective actions accordingly. These actions included adding timeliness to the Navy IG inspection and resuming area visits and counselor training. In January 2025, DOD issued a report to Congress describing these corrective actions. The congressional report noted that 52 percent of servicemembers met the timeliness requirement, double the 25 percent rate stated in our report. We encourage the Navy to continue to demonstrate improvement.
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